MARKET DEVELOPMENT
VEGOILS-Palm Drops To Near Two-month Low, Heads for 4th Weekly Loss
VEGOILS-Palm Drops To Near Two-month Low, Heads for 4th Weekly Loss
04/04/2014 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures fell to their lowest in almost two months on Thursday as a drop in overseas soy markets dragged on prices of the tropical oil, putting them on track for a fourth straight weekly loss.
Palm prices, which typically track soyoil markets, saw sharp gains of more than 1 percent in the previous session when U.S. and China soy prices surged following a report showing tight U.S. soybean stocks.
But soy futures later gave up gains amid profit-taking and expectations buyers will turn to cheaper soybean supplies from South America, which then weighed on the palm market.
"Our market is just following external factors," said a trader with a foreign commodities brokerage in Malaysia.
"The palm market went up sharply on Wednesday on the back of the soy markets, but yesterday night soybean oil fizzled out," the Kuala Lumpur-based trader added.
The benchmark June contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange slipped to 2,597 ringgit ($790) in late Thursday trade, their lowest since Feb. 11, before pulling up to 2,637 ringgit per tonne by the day's close, a 0.5 percent fall.
Benchmark palm futures have shed almost 1 percent so far this week, on track for a 9 percent drop in four weeks. The last time palm prices dropped more than this was in the four weeks ended Oct. 19, 2012.
Total traded volume stood at 55,983 lots of 25 tonnes, higher than the average lots of 35,000 tonnes.
Technicals showed Malaysian palm oil is expected to test support at 2,613 ringgit, a break below which will lead to a further loss towards 2,519 ringgit per tonne, said Reuters market analyst Wang Tao.
The U.S. soyoil contract for May rose around 1.2 percent in late Asian trade, while the most active September soybean oil contract on the Dalian Commodities Exchange fell 1.6 percent.
Cheaper soyoil prices narrow palm oil's discount to the rival vegetable oil, potentially channelling food and fuel demand away.
Refined palm olein is currently trading at about a $35 discount to soy oil, narrower than around $45 at the start of this year and from $300 early 2013.
In other markets, Brent crude eased further under $105 as oil dealers anticipated a rise in Libyan supply after the government neared a deal with rebels to reopen oil ports.
Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 1017 GMT
Contract Month Last Change Low High Volume
MY PALM OIL APR4 2671 -42.00 2650 2690 125
MY PALM OIL MAY4 2653 -14.00 2615 2653 2826
MY PALM OIL JUN4 2637 -11.00 2597 2640 26723
CHINA PALM OLEIN SEP4 6182 -136.00 6178 6246 450296
CHINA SOYOIL SEP4 6978 -110.00 6962 7016 595712
CBOT SOY OIL MAY4 41.32 +0.47 40.82 41.39 9288
NYMEX CRUDE MAY4 99.23 -0.39 99.07 99.48 10819
Palm oil prices in Malaysian ringgit per tonne
CBOT soy oil in U.S. cents per pound
Dalian soy oil and RBD palm olein in Chinese yuan per tonne
Crude in U.S. dollars per barrel
($1 = 3.2700 Malaysian Ringgit)
($1 = 6.2107 Chinese yuan)
Palm prices, which typically track soyoil markets, saw sharp gains of more than 1 percent in the previous session when U.S. and China soy prices surged following a report showing tight U.S. soybean stocks.
But soy futures later gave up gains amid profit-taking and expectations buyers will turn to cheaper soybean supplies from South America, which then weighed on the palm market.
"Our market is just following external factors," said a trader with a foreign commodities brokerage in Malaysia.
"The palm market went up sharply on Wednesday on the back of the soy markets, but yesterday night soybean oil fizzled out," the Kuala Lumpur-based trader added.
The benchmark June contract on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange slipped to 2,597 ringgit ($790) in late Thursday trade, their lowest since Feb. 11, before pulling up to 2,637 ringgit per tonne by the day's close, a 0.5 percent fall.
Benchmark palm futures have shed almost 1 percent so far this week, on track for a 9 percent drop in four weeks. The last time palm prices dropped more than this was in the four weeks ended Oct. 19, 2012.
Total traded volume stood at 55,983 lots of 25 tonnes, higher than the average lots of 35,000 tonnes.
Technicals showed Malaysian palm oil is expected to test support at 2,613 ringgit, a break below which will lead to a further loss towards 2,519 ringgit per tonne, said Reuters market analyst Wang Tao.
The U.S. soyoil contract for May rose around 1.2 percent in late Asian trade, while the most active September soybean oil contract on the Dalian Commodities Exchange fell 1.6 percent.
Cheaper soyoil prices narrow palm oil's discount to the rival vegetable oil, potentially channelling food and fuel demand away.
Refined palm olein is currently trading at about a $35 discount to soy oil, narrower than around $45 at the start of this year and from $300 early 2013.
In other markets, Brent crude eased further under $105 as oil dealers anticipated a rise in Libyan supply after the government neared a deal with rebels to reopen oil ports.
Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 1017 GMT
Contract Month Last Change Low High Volume
MY PALM OIL APR4 2671 -42.00 2650 2690 125
MY PALM OIL MAY4 2653 -14.00 2615 2653 2826
MY PALM OIL JUN4 2637 -11.00 2597 2640 26723
CHINA PALM OLEIN SEP4 6182 -136.00 6178 6246 450296
CHINA SOYOIL SEP4 6978 -110.00 6962 7016 595712
CBOT SOY OIL MAY4 41.32 +0.47 40.82 41.39 9288
NYMEX CRUDE MAY4 99.23 -0.39 99.07 99.48 10819
Palm oil prices in Malaysian ringgit per tonne
CBOT soy oil in U.S. cents per pound
Dalian soy oil and RBD palm olein in Chinese yuan per tonne
Crude in U.S. dollars per barrel
($1 = 3.2700 Malaysian Ringgit)
($1 = 6.2107 Chinese yuan)